


The stars, the neck and the moon

by sandyk



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, True crime love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-29
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:28:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22464931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sandyk/pseuds/sandyk
Summary: MJ can't be expected to be logical and rational when Peter's right there, being, like, himself.
Relationships: Michelle Jones/Peter Parker
Kudos: 77
Collections: Trope Bingo: Round Fourteen





	The stars, the neck and the moon

**Author's Note:**

> Not mine, no profit garnered. Thanks a!!! For the trope bingo spot "altered states of mind." Title from Junglepussy's Bout You. Apparently I will keep writing Peter and MJ getting together over and over and over ...

After Peter and Ned stopped being super boring and denying Peter was Spider-man, MJ enjoyed talking to them a lot more. 

She didn't talk to them a lot. It was a lot easier to be quiet. But sometimes she couldn't stop herself because all around her, people said such stupid and awful things. It couldn't be right that people were allowed to say the things they did. 

One time she was on the subway with Peter and Ned and someone was having an argument on the phone about the Zodiac killer. Peter patted her hand. He said, "They're getting it wrong, huh?"

"It's a good movie, but it's not, like, actual facts. Not everyone believes in that --" She frowned and pressed her lips together. 

"You could totally tell me," Peter said. "I'm interested."

"Too late for Spider-man to solve it, I'm sure the guy's dead," MJ said. 

"Or is he?" Peter was tapping his toe, nervous energy everywhere. MJ found it irritating.

MJ said, "Zodiac was just some loser, not a super villain or anything, and now he's dead." She crossed her arms and stared straight ahead. "The Black Dahlia killer, though, I have a theory."

"You could tell me that one," Peter said. 

"Maybe later," MJ said. 

Peter being Peter, he asked her the next day. She was bored, so she told him. It was a pretty elaborate theory. Peter listened very seriously. Of course he did. 

It was astonishing when she actually saw Peter in action, knowing it was Peter. He was so strong and also lean and he would just do flips like he was Simone Biles but with acknowledged super powers. Simone Biles probably had super powers. She didn't say it to Peter because she didn't want to plant the idea in Peter's head and then he told Tony and then MJ ruined Simone Biles's life. 

Then it was like ten at night and MJ should have been asleep but she was sucked into watching this old documentary on a murder in Scotland while reading about the case on Murderpedia so she didn't notice. But someone was knocking on her window and she nearly jumped out of her sweats for one second. Logic told her, though, as she stood up and looked out at the window, she was on the seventh floor with no fire escape on that side so it was definitely Peter. She opened the window and Peter came in delicately, tiny touch. It was fucking surreal watching Peter be Spider-man. 

"I never told you my address," she said. 

"Suit knows it," Peter said. He dropped soundlessly on the floor and took off his mask. "I've got this cut and it'll heal but it freaks May out and Ned was asleep and I was actually around here." He did something and his suit expanded and sort of fell off him. It fell off his chest, he was holding the pants part up. 

He had a lot of skin, like she could see a lot of skin. "Um," she said. She had a pink towel, she thought it was probably clean. She kept it in her room for when she was painting. She was holding it suddenly, like her brain shorted out by Peter and his skin. 

"Thanks," Peter said, with a smile. He had a really nice smile. He sat down and crossed his legs on the floor. The cut was on his arm and it really was bleeding a ton. He pressed the towel against the wound. "Really, it'll be fine soon. Sorry for just dropping in."

"Whatever," MJ said. She stopped the documentary on her laptop. She sat down across from him. She looked at him and past him. Her room probably looked so stupid. She didn't have any posters anymore. She kept her clothes folded and put away, but she had her books and art supplies and journals and pens all over the floor and one of her bookcases. She had a few family pictures up. Most embarrassing, she had her list on the wall behind her where Peter could see it. 

When she was thirteen, she started copying descriptions of art work from articles or books. Mostly female and/or Black artists. So it was just a long list, in MJ's handwriting, of what something looked like. Sometimes she tried to draw them, in her own hand and those were pinned next to it. It was childish. If Peter mentioned it, she would never talk to him again. 

Instead of saying that, or getting up and blocking the list, she kept staring at Peter's chest and all his muscle. She was trying to think of something to say but she felt a little hypnotized. She leaned forward and he leaned forward and they were kissing. Her lips were dry and so were his and he somehow smelled like the inside of a car. Probably from the suit. He opened his mouth and so did she, like, tongue. She felt very stupid. But also she was very warm and the kissing was so nice and excellent. It was excellent. 

She leaned back and her lips felt puffy. Like she'd been kissing. She'd kissed before. A few times. But this felt different. Ten o'clock at night and Peter with no shirt on. He said, "Sorry, um --"

She nodded a lot like she knew what he was talking about. He leaned forward again and she did, too, so they were kissing again. She reached out and he took her hand and then pressed it against his chest. That was hot somehow. Peter had game. Possibly he was just super freaking hot while also enjoying, really deeply enjoying, getting excited by all the kissing. 

Then she sat back and pulled back her hand and bumped against the wall. "Why're you sorry?"

"Because maybe you didn't want to kiss? But I guess you did." Peter stood up with a graceful little jump and took the towel away. The cut was just a thin line. Peter tried to fold up the towel while holding up the lower part of his suit. "Um."

MJ said, "I'll turn around, you can put on the suit again." She turned around and looked at the list. Four descriptions of Lorna Simpson's photographs. Those were right near the top. 

Then Peter tapped her shoulder and MJ spun back around. "Hi." He was back in his costume. Uniform. Suit. Peter said "hi" again. "I should head out."

"Okay," MJ said. "I'll see you tomorrow."

MJ woke up right before her alarm and got to school early. She sat in her seat in first period, right next to where Peter would sit. Did sit as he came in and looked at her. "Hi again," he said.

"We can't make out in first period but if you want to, we can at lunch," MJ said. 

"That might bug Ned," Peter said. 

"Okay, after school," MJ said. "Unless you're freaking out. I'm not freaking out."

"You're definitely not freaking out," Peter said. He had the biggest smile. She'd seen prettier, but she really liked his. "I might be a little."

"Well, you don't have to," MJ said. "But warn me if you're coming to my apartment next time. Not just knocking on the window."

"Got it," Peter said. "Did you get to watch the end of your documentary? I thought I heard it, when I was outside. Something about Scotland? And the sixties?"

MJ nodded. "I didn't," she said. "I'll watch the rest of it tonight." She was freaking out in her head. But she was way better than that. She said, "Do you want to watch it with me?"

Peter said, "Yeah. Cool. Cool, that'll be awesome. But we're turning it off before we make out because that is not, that's a bad soundtrack."

"Maybe I like it," MJ said. She didn't think she did.

"Well, I don't," Peter said. "So we're compromising. Compromise is really good."

"Who told you that?" MJ finally smiled. Peter was totally right, but she didn't want to give in. She should just give in. "You're right. Murder documentary and then kissing."

Peter said, "I really like you."

She smiled and looked at her desk. "Me, too. I like you, too."


End file.
